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Mike Johnson is facing a new challenge with the smallest House majority in history. Despite remaining as the Republican speaker, he will now have to manage an even smaller majority. This comes at a crucial time when President-elect Donald J. Trump will rely on his support to push through important agenda items.
Written by Catie Edmondson
Reporting live from the seat of
The margin of victory for Speaker Mike Johnson has decreased further.
The last House race was officially decided on Tuesday when Representative John Duarte from California, a newly elected Republican, accepted defeat to Democrat Adam Gray. This solidified a 220-215 majority for the Republicans, which is even narrower than their current 220-213 majority.
The margins will decrease even more in January as Representatives Elise Stefanik of New York and Mike Waltz of Florida step down to work in the Trump administration. Additionally, former Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida has announced he will not be coming back.
After the special election, the Republican party will have a slim majority of 217-215 in the House, which is one of the smallest margins in history. With all Democrats voting against a measure, Mr. Johnson cannot afford any of his party members to vote against it until the vacant positions are filled. Even after the vacancies are filled, only three Republicans can vote against a bill without it failing to pass.
On Wednesday, Mr. Johnson appeared calm and unworried about the situation, explaining to reporters in Capitol Hill that they are experienced in working with a small majority and it is something they are used to.
He mentioned that they have no extra resources to give. However, all their members are aware of this fact. They discussed this today, as they always do, emphasizing the importance of working together as a team towards the same goal.
He didn’t talk about how he achieved success in managing a small majority by working with Democrats to pass important laws that his own party didn’t support. This strategy might not work in the future when President-elect Donald J. Trump is in charge.
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